A life Not Lived
by MarynMoriarty
Summary: When Finch sleeps with Jack's new wife he's fired for good. The rest of the staff are told to forget about him, but how could they forget about Finch? 10 years Maya runs into him and is very surprised at what she finds.
1. Chapter 1

Don't get me wrong, I like working at Blush, it's just sometimes I wish I had done something different with my life. I've always liked taking care of people and helping them, but sometimes I wonder if I made the right decision coming here to work for Jack. Jack's a great boss but sometimes I just can't handle him, sometimes I loose it and this was one of those times.

A normal day at a normal fashion magazine, that was how I would describe this day. Though there were a few factors that could make this a very bad day or a very good day, I'd prefer the latter personally. I watched as the rest of the workers arrived, well most of them, Nina probably wouldn't be in until noon if at all.

"Hiya Maya, how are we doing this fine morning?" I asked Maya flirtatiously as she exited the elevator, she rolled her eyes at the comment as she does every morning.

"Back off Finch" she told me a little colder than usual.

"Woah, someone got off on the wrong side of the bed this morning. Luckily mine's free. Haha up top!" I joked, Maya wasn't impressed and left my high five in the air, I shrugged it off and went back to arranging meetings for Jack.

"DENNIS! Get in here!" Jack sounded angry, I was worried he'd figured something out, something I didn't especially want him to find out. Nonetheless I rushed into his office as I do every time he calls my name.

"Yeah, what is it Jack?" I asked, Jack was pacing the room looking angry and slightly outraged.

"I think Claire has been cheating on me with another guy!" exclaimed Jack, I pressed my lips together nervously. Claire is Jack's latest wife and probably his prettiest. She had long dark hair and emerald eyes, she was just finishing up her modeling career at 31.

"What would make you think that" my voice was a little higher than usual, which was saying something, but Jack took no notice.

"She left a message on my cell phone! It was obviously not for me! Here listen." He told me, pulling out his cellphone and beginning to play the message.

"No Jack don't..." I protested but the voice message had already started.

"Hey" a sensual voice started, obviously Claire "Thanks again for that night, I had a good time" I bit my lip as the message continued "I especially liked the way you used cats" I mentally groaned "Call me anytime, Jack doesn't have to know" The message ended.

"SEE!" cried Jack "Dennis, I need you to figure out who this person is and tell me right away!" Jack ordered, I pinched the bridge of my nose.

"Alright I'll do my best Jack" I sighed now very unsure about what I was going to do. I walked back out to my 'desk' and tried to formulate a plan. It was then that Elliot arrived, I decided to try to ask him for help but use a really clever way of disguising it.

"Hey Elliot, come here" I whispered, Elliot walked over and put his rm on my desk, he looked at me expectantly "Um, well so Jack's discovered that Claire is cheating on him-"

"Oh that's horrible, how could she do that do him! He must be crushed, I feel bad for the poor sucker who did it, he's dead" speculated Elliot, I smacked my head down on my desk and groaned.

"Oh my god it's you" realized Elliot. So much for clever.

"Would you keep it down! I don't want Jack to hear!" I whispered loudly.

"You better tell him, if he finds out another way you're even worse off, go now, tell him!" Elliot told me, I played with my hands restlessly.

"I can't, not yet anyway, I have to figure out a plan" I said.

"DENNIS!" I familiar voice shouted, I ran my hand thru my hair and walked into his office.

"yes Jack?'" I asked faithfully.

"have you found the guy yet?" asked Jack

"You just told me to start looking, of course I haven't found him!" I exclaimed.

"Come on Dennis! You're supposed to be the best and this is important!" Jack told me, I nodded "Are you sure I haven't found him, any guesses. Come on Dennis think. This is your Job!"

"This is not my Job!" I shouted. I just cracked. "My job is to file and answer phones and do paper work, not to be your lap dog that will come whenever you call! I will find the guy Claire was with last Thursday don't worry! Give me some time"

Jack was taken aback I had only really yelled at him like once, well maybe twice, but never with such anger. I really didn't want to hear him yelling at me bacl so I decided to quickly get out of there but before I had time to turn around he called to me.

"How did you know?" that was the only thing he said, I was confused what did he mean how did I know.

"How did I know what?" I asked out of breath.

"The day that Claire was with the other guy, you said last Thursday. How would you know, Dennis?" Jack's words were like ice. Cold, unforgiving with a crystal clear meaning.

"I-I-I" I stuttered not knowing what to say, it was over my lie had caved in. I was done for.

"Dennis, you're fired"

Jack had fired me once before, for sleeping with his wife whom he was broken up with. This was worse he and her were still together. And now I knew that no matter what happened there was no way I could ever come back to Blush but still I denied the truth for a few more seconds.

"What? Jack you can't be serious-" I started

"I am. And this time you're not coming back. Goodbye Dennis" Those were Jack's final words to me for a very, very long time.

When I turned around I was met with the stares of the five people I had worked with for seven years. Even Nina had arrived. There was shock from Nina, Anger, at me, from Maya, A knowing look from Eliot. And I deserved everyone of those piercing stares. I didn't say anything more to my co-workers, I just packed up my things and left the office, never to return.


	2. Chapter 2

After Finch left the rest of the group still stood outside Jack's door. Jack had turned his chair around so it faced the window and said nothing. There were a few moments of silence in which it seemed that the world stopped and nothing was moving or breathing.

"Dad-" Maya was the first to say anything.

"No Maya, I just need to be left alone right now, please leave" he said in a monotone voice.

"But Finch, I mean-" Jack cut her off.

"No Maya! I don't want you to ever mention the name Finch or Dennis ever again! I am going to forget I ever knew him I suggest you three do the same. Dennis Finch never worked here, and you are forbidden to see him, even causally" Ordered Jack.

"You can't order us not to see him socially" said Eliot

"I just did" said Jack with finality.

"You can't just forget about a person dad!" Maya exclaimed looking at him angrily.

"I can so, I've done it before!" said Jack.

"Finch is not one of your ex-wives! He's your friend he's all of ours friend and you can't erase him from your memory" Maya told him.

"Watch me"

Over the next few months the only person to mention Finch's name was Jack. He couldn't shake the habit of asked Dennis for everything. Even when he got a new assistant he would sometimes say Dennis instead of the assistant's real name, Ted. Ted never really became part of the family Blush once had. He didn't sit in on the meetings, he wasn't invited to parties or dinners, he wasn't like Finch.

Ted was very polite and never hit on Maya, Nina or even any of the models. He was married anyway. He always filed everything right an took messages and letter dictations. He was never sarcastic or rude to anyone and never asked for benefits or gifts. He wasn't eccentric, annoying, stupid, selfish, arrogant or mean. Maya, Nina and Eliot hated him.

They missed Finch but Jack was right slowly but surely they began to think of Finch less and less. Until they barely ever thought of him and began getting used to Ted and his simple ways. Dennis Finch was someone who would be remembered if you mentioned his name but it was hardly ever mentioned except by Jack.

One month after Finch was fired it happened all the time.

Jack was trying to think of a way to thank Donald Trump for the birthday gift he got him.

"Dennis! Come here I need you to dictate a letter." Jack frowned when no one came "Dennis! DENNIS!"

"I'm sorry sir did you mean me?" asked Ted poking his head into the door, Jack was confused for a moment but quickly recovered and didn't even look embarrassed at the slip up. Maya's sad look was unnoticed by her father.

This sort of thing happened for a while they got less frequent until they practically stopped altogether. It was ten years after Jack had fired Dennis and almost everyone had completely forgotten about him, a thought which seemed laughable ten years ago. But that morning everyone was reminded once again.

Jack walked his normal cheery self, everyone at Blush was in the main room in a mad dash to get the new issue finished. It wasn't very loud however, in fact it was very quiet. Maya, Nina and Eliot were at the conference table near Jack's office working on a layout for page 19 when...

"Dennis what's that smell I like?" asked Jack on his way passed Ted's desk. If it was quiet before it was even quieter now. Nina, Eliot and Maya were overwhelmed with a wave of emotion and memories. Ten years had passed since Finch was fired. Ted had been there ten years and still could not answer a question that Finch could in the first 5 years.

"Um, I'm not sure sit. And who is this Dennis, I've heard you mention him before. Who is he?" asked Ted.

"It doesn't matter" said Jack.

"Wait!" cried Ted, he reached into one of the drawers and pulled out a very old piece of paper "It it meadow after rainfall?"

It was exactly that, but Jack wasn't going to let the rest of Blush see he missed his assistant he hadn't seen in ten years so he faked it.

"That's it!" he smiled and walked back into his office. Nina, Eliot and Maya didn't bounce back so easily they sat in silence, sad. They were ashamed about forgetting him and sad about remembering him.

"I need to go for a walk" said Maya suddenly, holding back tears. She stood up quickly and rushed out of the building.

Maya walked quickly down the street consumed with thoughts and memories of Finch, some good, some bad, some just plain Finchy. She wasn't watching where she was going as she crossed the busy New York intersection and wasn't watching the car as she was thrown of her feet on to the sidewalk cracking her head on the cement.

When Maya woke up she found herself in a hospital bed, she didn't like hospitals very much, they last one that she was in was when they had to check her for burns after the pre-school incident. She wasn't fully awake yet but could still hear voices, they were far away but the rest of hospital was quiet so she could hear them.

"She didn't have any identification so we're still trying to figure out who she is, she'll tell us when she wakes up" a female voice said, she assumed it was the nurse talking to the doctor, the doctor didn't reply just walked away. The nurse, on the other hand, walked over to Maya.

"Hey, can you open your eyes for me, please? Come on just open them up!" said the nurse from before her voice was sugary sweet and sounded as if she was taking to baby rather than a full grown woman. Nonetheless Maya opened her eyes and was greeted with a happy looking dark haired nurse.

"The doctor will come to see you in a moment he's just checking on another patient" the Nurse explained, Maya nodded weakly she was almost completely awake now.

The doctor walked towards her but didn't look at her, his nose was in her chart reading it over again and again.

"Alright, so looks like you might have some head trauma so we should do a-" the doctor began to speak but Maya cut him off because she recognized the unmistakable voice of-

"FINCH!" Maya cried.

"That's doctor Finch" Finch's nose was still in the chart and wasn't looking up. 'Nice to see he hasn't lost his arrogance' thought Maya.

"Finch!" she cried again, this time Finch finally looked up from the chart. He went pale and his eyes went wide as he saw Maya lying in the hospital bed, he dropped the chart as he took a few steps backward.

"Oh dear god" he whispered.

"Finch it's me!" said Maya happy to finally be seeing Finch.

"Yes Maya. I know it's you. I'm not stupid I got thru med school didn't I?" muttered Finch collecting himself.

"You're a-a-a doctor?" asked Maya shocked, Finch gestured to his outfit.

"Uh, ya?" he said in his sarcastic Finch-like tone.

"Oh Finch, I've missed you so much! We've missed you Nina and Eliot, everyone" cried Maya.

"Yeah I see how much you've missed me, never even said a word to me after I left" scoffed Finch in a bitter tone.

"Oh we wanted to Finch but my dad forbid it and if he found out we did talk to you he'd-" Maya paused.

"Fire you?" Finch finished her sentence. He sighed and ran his fingers thru his hair, it was cut shorter like it had been when they first met.

"Oh Finch" she sighed happily, then frowned "How on earth did you become a doctor?"

"Well miss doubtful I didn't always want to cater to the rich and powerful, I always really wanted to be a doctor and after I was fired I decided to follow my dreams I worked three jobs to push myself thru med school and then studied every moment I wasn't working. Ten years later ta da!" he finished his story and Maya was in awe. She had no idea that Finch could have such determination or ambition. She didn't even know he was ever interested in medicine.

Suddenly Maya became very light headed she began to drift off into a deep sleep, this caused Finch to break out of his trance of story-telling and act swiftly to get Maya to an OR.

"We need to get her to surgery. Now!" those were the last words she heard before she fell completely into the darkness. Amazing that now the one and only Dennis Finch was working to save her life.


End file.
